Never, Ever, Ever Again!
by Vanessa S. Quest
Summary: BanGin pairing, during a job, Ginji sees something that sends him running all the way back to the Limitless Fortress, and where misunderstandings fly everything compounds until an explosive climax. ...Or something cheesy like that.


Never Ever, Ever

Story by Vanessa S. Quest

Panting, Ginji raced through the heavy foot traffic, circling around to spot Ban. Behind him chased Hishiki the Undead which marked a bad day.

"Ban-chan… Ban-chan… BAN!" He spotted Ban surrounded by a set of formidable foes, some upstarts Himiko had mentioned that had come from a Korean faction, as he finally placed them he saw something he never wanted to see- his eyes shrank back into pupils as one of them pushed Ban over the pedestrian walk-way and into the path of a white van. The blood splurted over the windows, windshield, and hood and roof. His body hurtled over the divider where he lost view of it.

The blond slid to a halt at the beginning of the pedestrian bridge where Ban's lifeless body burnt into his memory before the reality hit him like Ban's 2-ton grip. Ginji screamed so loud his ears popped, dropping the loot he ran past Hishiki as fast as he could toward Mugenjo. As Hishiki huffed, he turned and continued to pursue the distraught blond up until the subway line, then down the electric track, and into a clearing that had been a platform at one point. Ginji's eyes narrowed, shrinking into Raitei's wrathful eyes as he hopped back onto the rails, putting a foot on each of the two rails, and using his left outstretched arm to arc the 'third rail' from power drawn off the cable line above. Ginji pointed his right hand at Hishiki the Undead.

"You're really an idiot if you think that'll kill me." Hishiki said hopping onto the track himself, getting ready to pop off the blond's head.

Raitei smirked then flung a trashcan from across the terminal at Hishiki. Then he threw a bench, then another, and continued until a metal mesh surrounded him.

"This is futile, I'll kill you now, you can join your damn partner."

Raitei stopped pointing his hands, hanging them at his sides. He let out a curt, depraved laugh, "You don't get it do you?" He shot up both hands at Hishiki's barrier leaving them white hot as he magnetically separated particles into long spikes tangled into the tracks and around the protector.

The sound of an express train's horn left Hishiki to turn his head, Raitei hopped onto one rail on Hishiki's track and walked it like a tight rope as the train was upon them, Hishiki tried to punch free enough of the debris to jump away but failed.

Raitei stepped back off the rail, a decimeter away, holding himself stiff as Hishiki was pushed along 80 meters of track before the train stopped completely.

Walking behind the tape that marked off the abandoned platform, he returned to street level and continued on to Mugenjo unhindered.

Ban dusted off his arm looking around for Ginji. Where the hell was he? They only had a minute to get to the car—

He heard a familiar panicked scream and ran in that direction.

Had there been more of them!

His adrenalin surged, when he saw Ginji's loose backpack horrible what-ifs they had agreed, in advance, not to happen poured through his mind as he wondered if they just had.

Lifting the sack, he ran toward the voice's direction and looked around at the source. Ban had the jewelry but he couldn't find Ginji anywhere.

After three hours searching, he changed directions and started to look for a ransom letter, when that yielded nothing he called Hevn. Ban had a sinking feeling, Ginji needed him. Horribly. And he didn't know where his pet electric eel was.

"Where are you, idiot!" He called aloud from inside the Subaru 360.

He didn't want to admit he needed help, in fact he hated that feel of helplessness but he knew he had to gather some intelligence, which meant he needed to get to the Honky Tonk, hell, maybe the idiot already stumbled in there hurt or something. That was wishful thinking and Ban knew better. If even just ignoring the rule that real life wasn't that nice, the fact that there had been no communication was enough.

By 4AM, Ban pulled over to the side of the road. Not a sound from anyone, driving around in vain for hours upon hours, he needed to crash. While Ban Midou did not cry, sleeping Ban Midou's eyes leaked a lot. After the three hour intermission he woke up at the sound of rain and a clap of lightning.

A figure approached his car and his heart leapt. Grabbing the keys he ran from the vehicle to the approaching form. "Ginji!"

He dropped his excited hands that had just landed on shoulders too narrow, devastating his pose from utter jubilance into utter misery within a flash of lightning. "Oh, it's you. Sorry. I wasn't trying to molest you, Kazuki. What are you doing here though?"

"Ban-kun, so you are here. I see." Kazuki touched his bells and drew threads to his fingers.

"Ban Midou, though I am not fully aware of what you've truly done, I must warn you. Stay out of Mugenjo! As a former member of the Volt's four kings, to trespass is to become our enemy."

"What? Why would I go there?" His eyes sharpened. "Are you behind Ginji's disappearance! Answer me! Is he there?"

"Makubex has stepped down, Masaki is also behind us. You will not get through to Ginji-kun ever again."

"Kazuki! Wait! Is he hurt? What the hell happened to him? Why is he there?" He grabbed Kazuki's shoulder only for thread to lace up his arm. "You jackass what's this!"

"I am delivering the message. You've upset Raitei for the last time!" Kazuki retracted his bells, leaving the string hanging from Ban's hand as a cut connection of heartstrings. How could he have devastated Ginji so much? It would not be forgiven.

Raitei approached the Beltway crackling with enormous amounts of power. A pair of attackers had come down and taken a little girl during the night. Spotting the two, and the tattered body of a five year old Raitei merely looked at them, one at a time.

"Look what you've DONE!" Pointing, the body of the first assailant fell to the ground as a piping heap of flesh. His clothing slowly took to flame and acted to consume the corpse even more gradually. As the other took up a metal bar Raitei moved to the side with a quickness that seemed like teleportation to the unaided eye.

Grabbing the other's neck, Raitei looked through the helmet as if finding his eyes in the dark space that did so well to cover his face.

He threw out 10,000 volts as lightning shot outward from the fiberglass helmet knocking it off the limp body revealing an angelic face of a handsome teenager, who had just killed eighteen people this week. Ginji let the body crumple to the floor, then carrying the weightless body of the dead little girl he made the long procession back to the mass cemetery they all knew too well.

Makubex commented, "I know this seems awful, Ginji-kun but this has only happened one-tenth the times it used to since before the Volts."

He exhaled from his nose in a sigh-like gesture, the weight was already so much.

"We've already come this far, and now with you here… I know we can stop this all! We could regain some peace- no, we could make it safe again! Completely!" Makubex smiled.

Ginji gave a somber smile, only one-tenth the fraction that until recently the others had seen.

Kazuki approached him carefully. "Ginji-kun why've you come back here alone? Do you plan to stay?"

Ginji gave them the omnipotent smile only the Lightning Lord had in his repertoire. "I'm tired."

"Where's Ban-kun?" Kazuki read Ginji as his body flinched reflexively in pain.

"Don't… Kazuki, just don't mention his name. Not ever again!" The tears fizzled away as the electricity separated their bonds into gaseous elements.

Kazuki was taken aback, what had Ban-kun done? Once Ginji had gone to sleep in his normal location, Kazuki left Mugenjo to track him down, and then tell Shido Ginji-kun had finally come back.

He smiled to himself, but somehow that seemed sad.

When he got back from his issue of warning to Ban-kun, Shido was in toe as was Emishii who had been working on something with Shido at the time.

"No way, he went back? Did he say for how long or why?"

"No, but it's just like it was before. He even fell asleep in the window sill. Masaki's guarding him like old times, and he even slipped into his old clothes. I saw him hand over his things to Makubex, I think he's planning to stay."

"That's great! Finally someone who'll appreciate my humor again!"

Shido shook his head, Kazuki formed a sweatdrop holding up his arms defensively. "Maybe you should wait until he's more settled in, and in one of his good moods. Oh! Also! There is to be no mentions of Ban's name by Ginji's decree."

Shido looked at Kazuki, "Something about that seems wrong… if this is just some fight it's horrible for Makubex if he gets his hopes up…"

"Even if it is, we're his friends and still owe him a safe place to stay. Now let's get back."

Ginji opened his eyes, the only light to them brought on by sheer electrical power. He slipped past the others and went back to the Beltway. He walked in, looking around, at first a handful of riff-raff approached, some holding chains, others guns, still others two-by-fours, and some of the creative ones held make-shift spears.

After handling the first three droves he moved in deeper, now stronger opponents came forward, but still none were challenges.

As the activity continued even the Watcher came down to bear witness. Kagami debated the merits of informing one of his favorite audiences to stop by and see.

Ginji panted after taking down another dozen Beltway killers. He shook his head to the side letting electricity raise up his body before feeling completely refreshed. "Stay out of my territory." He exited the Beltway as sudden as he came in, leaving with no injuries to speak of.

Slipping back into the Volts main base, he returned to a damaged windowsill that opened an entire room to dawn's light. After a twenty minute nap, he got up just after the first wave of his people.

Kazuki smiled at him. "You seem well rested."

Ginji gave a somber, "Thanks." Kazuki handed him a coffee. Maybe caffeine would bring out more of Ginji's energetic side. "Have there been any attacks?"

"None to speak of."

"Good."

"Ginji-kun, can you tell me why you're come back? Do you plan to stay?"

Ginji looked out the window. "Am I overstaying my welcome? Do you really want me to leave?"

"No! It's not that, it's just so sudden, and we needed to know if we should call back the former members of the Volts…"

"Don't bother, they'll come back when they sense me." He turned to face Kazuki. "Are you ready to go on rounds with me? If you don't feel up to it, I can just ask Shido or Masaki."

"No, no, I'd be happy to go. Let's get Shido to do the perimeter."

"Have people from the outside been a problem?"

Kazuki nodded, "And with you here there are a few additional threats."

"I'm sorry. But you don't have to worry about me, no one can defeat me here."

"But B- alright. I'll still have him check." Ginji had shot him a dangerously deep look. No, this couldn't be some small misunderstanding, this was something big, indeed.

"Ban… he's… how could he? He broke his word… it's all over…"

By 08:30, Shido had made rounds of the perimeter to check for any signs of that Snake-Bastard. He guarded three points with particular attention, and by 10:05 that paid off as he spotted Midou.

"Kazuki already told you to get lost! There's nothing here for you Midou." Shido whistled, signaling one of his friendly black snakes to give Emishii the heads up to alert the others.

"Yeah, yeah just shut up and step down."

"I've been waiting a long time for this…" Shido threw a punch at Ban, who caught it, and squeezed. As he snapped through, a swarm of rats took Shido's place as he cut through the air kicking Ban's shoulder.

"Are you serious about this? Monkey-Boy I don't need Ginji mad at me for kicking your ass."

"Don't worry, that won't happen, and you sure as hell won't see him here." Shido punched left right, left right, kicked up, dipped down and kicked out at Ban's ankles. All of which were skillfully deflected at amazing speed. Ban tore into Shido's shoulder.

"Snake bite!"

Normally at this point it would be done, the argument resolved or Ginji separating them. He had to find Ginji and figure out what was so wrong. Yet everyone had to get in his way today and put him in a bad- alright, worse- mood today.

He grabbed Shido's head and tossed him into the wall, not surprising at all, birds flew away at impact.

"Wolf Form!" Shido bit Ban's shoulder, who then slammed Shido into the gate, then ground and smacked him.

"Boy do you know how expensive rabie-shots are!" He punched Shido in the stomach then, with Shido about to take a new form, Emishii's whip caught Ban's forearm.

"What the hell- hey wannabe funny-man, keep out of this! This is between Shido and me!"

"Wrong, this is between you and Ginji, so any forces in between can and will be used! Indiscriminately!"

Shido grabbed Ban's throat.

Ban's flash of eyes gave Shido the chills. He pulled Emishii's whip straight from his hands. Cracking it, he latched it so the whip wound tightly around Emishii's arms pinning them to his side, then pulled him down crashing into Shido.

In a clatter of garbage cans and heap of limbs, Ban neatly dropped the whip and walked inside the entrance, taking off in a sprint once he did.

Ginji looked at Kazuki, panting slilghtly. Kazuki seemed winded much more, and sported a few good wounds to speak of, Ginji didn't even feel a sweat with as much energy that was surrounding him, but that didn't really mean anything.

This many Beltway trash meant someone else was around, a bigger fish, possibly from Babylon City, he looked over at Kazuki. "We did a good job. Let's head back down and recover for a few. I'm a little hungry." He lied. He was never really hungry here, per say, but the thought of Kazuki hurt was enough for him to stomach. He couldn't lose anyone more. "Why don't you get some food from Red and let Gen treat that arm of yours, alright? I'm just going to wander around Lower Town."

Kazuki smiled, that was the Ginji he knew and respected.

"Of course, what would you like?"

He smiled the happiest smile Raitei ever had, one-fifth of a Ginji Amano smile. "Now, I'm not going to tell her what to make, any food is good to me."

Kazuki measured Ginji again and smiled, "Hai. Don't wander off too much, and don't get lost!" Kazuki laughed lightly.

"Well, I can't promise anything." He closed his eyes smiling, how could he not be lost? Without his Ban-chan he already was lost. Hopelessly. At least he could fix this as well as possible, though. It was all he had left, and the only thing he knew how to do without Ban's help.

He watched Kazuki's back retreat from just outside the Beltway's entrance way before turning around and going back in. His thin spikes of hair rose a few centimeters before settling back down.

"I know someone's in here. Get out here, now."

After stepping over more cluttered bodies, one grabbed his leg. "GET AWAY!" He shocked it, causing the hand to drop limply to the ground. His eyes widened when he saw the face. "B…Ban… BASTARDS!" He released enough electrical force to physically push the bodies out in a circle away from him. The ground scorched in a ring.

A woman dressed in fashionable business attire walked toward him and tsk'ed. "Tch, and here we thought you'd like a visit from your friend. Why are you trespassing here?"

"Why are you trespassing in Lower Town? I'm merely making sure you stay out."

Makubex glared at his laptop screen, "Masaki! Someone's hacked into my program! It's flooding the place with Ban Midou copies!"

"How bothersome, this is probably a play to upset Ginji. Let's go clean this up."

"But this is a perfect chance for the real Ban to slip in. You have to find Ginji-kun! What if he takes Ginji away again?"

Ginji's eyes darkened. "I'll kill you, all of you, for interfering with those people's lives!"

She approached Raitei, despite the microwaves he emitted. "But then, what would you have left? Do you think they'd be grateful after you outlived your purpose? Oh, don't fret, we'll make sure that never happens." She walked back through the door to Babylon City sending three strong fighters out in her place.

Elegance stood in formation as dozens of Ban Midou copies appeared throughout the streets.

"Juubei, are any of them real?"

Juubei shook his head, "None of these, but he is here, somewhere."

"Then we have no choice but to find him and fight."

Makubex ran to Masaki. "Masaki-kun! Ginji-kun's not in Lower Town!"

"What!"

"He's near the gates to Babylon City! He's fighting 3 against 1!"

Masaki looked around, sensing something but seeing no one, he hurried off to find Ginji. "Tell the others at once! Midou's one thing but Babylon City's another entirely!"

Akabane tapped his hat. "Well, Ban-kun, it is quite a find, you here and hiding."

"Shut up Jackal. Don't blow my hiding spot. Why are you here, anyways?"

"Ah, you see, Kagami-kun has hired me to transport something important from Babylon City to outside of Lower Town. You know, I hear Ginji-kun is there. Shall I take you to him?"

"Why don't I just tag along." Akabane tipped his hat.

"So long as you agree not to interrupt my work."

"Don't you mean fun?"

He laughed, "Hm, I suppose I do."

Masaki spotted Kazuki as he approached the pharmacy. "Kazuki! Get Gen's medical kit and hurry! Ginji's in trouble!"

"Nani?" Kazuki looked at Juubei. "But he said he'd be in Lower Town… did they jump him? Did we miss some?"

"Forget Midou, leave him to me, Kazuki-chan, just take Juubei and go- he's a doctor after all. Right?"

Kazuki nodded, as he entered Gen's pharmacy he yelled in shock, "Iie! You too Shido-kun? Emishii-kun? What happened? Who!"

Shido snarled. "That Snake Bastard, who else?"

Emishii groaned. "We failed you."

"That doesn't matter! Can you fight? Ginji-kun's in terrible danger! Babylon City has him 3 against 1!"

They each shot up, grabbing the necessary provisions before the set ran to the entryway to the Beltway. As they used Makubex to secure safe passage, Kagami guided Akabane and Ban a different route to the desired point.

"Raitei, why don't we even the field for you. Cut the circuits…"

Raitei's eyes darkened. "Go away!"

"Oh sure, to Lower Town? We'd be glad to run amok. That is, unless you'd like to keep us company."

"Leave Lower Town ALONE!"

They surrounded Raitei before beginning the fight.

As the first string of attacks began, puppet mastery- where the target is paralyzed and moved at the controller's whim, sent Raitei into the two other's attacks full-brunt before sending him hurtling into a wall with such a velocity to play through the attack's duration. The first attack sent Raitei through an acid wash as a mist of abrasive chemicals burnt around Raitei, only staved off by Ginji's natural electrical current, then he was pushed into a frenzied slash of shurikens that circled back around his magnetized form for a second and third go before returning to the wielder.

Shurikens were launched at Ginji, as he was phased, against the wall.

He made a shockwave sending the shurikens to the ground then three bolts moved through the floor in a non-directed mass force to attack each of them.

"Ginji-kun!" Kazuki rushed up, only in time to be hit with the puppet master's technique. Ginji's eyes widened then returned to their reduced size as he took in a sharp breath. Kazuki pulled back his punch, leaving the shuriken in Ginji's side before kicking it in deeper.

Ginji blocked with his forearms. "Kazu…ki."

"Ginji-kun! Please stop me! I do not wish to hurt you!" Ginji sent an attack around Kazuki, hitting the control device, Kazuki dropped to the ground before regaining control and standing himself up.

Using needles, Juubei pinned down stray shurikens as Kazuki captured the wooden medium in a bundle of strings. The master puppeteer smiled.

"You must know my technique does not need that toy, of course."

"What's equally important is that Ginji-kun here realizes that if his friends continue to interfere the consequence is more of our kind interfering with these border disputes. He did come alone to fight, after all."

"W…what? Ginji-kun you came back here alone? Without any backup!"

"Oh yes, first he came early this morning, then with you, then after you left him. Now, Ginji-kun what ever will you do?"

"Stop fighting! Get out of here. This was my job- my responsibility, not yours! Get out of here before you get hurt!"

Ginji stepped forward. "Because I'm done playing. I'll kill you all…" Crackling sounds faded low as Ginji's body began to hum with power.

Kazuki momentarily gave Juubei and Shido a worried look.

"Emishii, Shido… both of you have to get out of my range, too, so I can fight."

Masaki blasted Ban into the wall. "You don't belong here, especially with that man. I won't kill you fast like the others would try. If Ginji doesn't want to hear your name he sure as hell won't have to identify your body!"

Ban tipped his tinted sunglasses and took out a cigarette. "Have a light old man? You know, this place- none of you know a thing about gratitude do you?" He pressure gripped Masaki's face after making a fast advance. They made several clashes and back steps, Masaki took a bad step and Ban, turning it to his advantage, sent him to the floor.

"You idiot! As you're detaining me GINJI could be dying fighting those Babylon City monstrosities! He never fought them or the Beltway people there alone until he came back but _they've_ studied him- Raitei- all his flaws and are playing those up right NOW!"

"NOW!" Reverberated as Ginji's body was erected, mid-air, palms out to his sides as Raitei summoned his power in the vulnerable looking pose. "More, summon more, more, more… become the god you're meant to be!"

Child of Babylon City."

As the power ripped through Mugenjo, Lower Town flickered, making, momentarily, a population of 8 million to flicker into nothing before looking around, confused. Ginji crumpled to the floor.

"You could drain them all like a battery. What, 8 million souls now, and you could take them all down with you. That makes you a God, Raitei Ginji."

Ginji spasmed on the floor, eyes open wide but unseeing, his body intoxicated with too much energy. Discharging even the smallest change possibly leading to the catastrophic chain reaction and overload blowing the self-contained circuit Raitei had just become.

"But then, if you're a god… that would make us god killers, ne?"

The puppet master took out a garrote made of electrical wires just as Ban and Akabane came up into their view. "Thanks to you, we'll be able to fix that little unauthorized download and start over. Thanks again." He clipped one end of the garrote to a negative charge, then tightened it around Raitei's throat while he was still stunned, and clipped positive to complete the battery's circuit.

Ginji's body became completely blue-white, the wires slipping off or more accurately _through_ him as he became pure electrical force before reforming, physically. Somehow he managed to contain it all, and somehow on a strange level he realized what Makubex must feel like, if only for an instance. His whole body went limp as Juubei shielded Kazuki with his back to Ginji and both Shido and Emishii shielded their eyes with their forearms. Jackal tipped his hat, the slit allowing one eye to bare witness, and Ban the only one watching without flinching.

Akabane smiled. "Raitei seems to be at 250."

Ban looked at the three Babylon City residents, catching their eyes in a wisp of motion. "Kazuki, take Jackal's coat it's insulated. Wrap Ginji in it and go. You have one minute to get to safe waters. GO!"

He tipped down his sunglasses and began to chant all-too familiar words as a serpent engulfed his arm giving him it's strength. Akabane smiled eerily, his job would be very fun indeed.

Once at the entry way back from the Beltway and Lower Town, Kazuki sent Juubei down to clear way of all people, especially Makubex. As Juubei reached the hurt emo whiz-kid he gave a brief description.

Raitei saw five familiar faces around him as his eyes opened, now at grips, temporarily, with the excess of power.

Kazuki, Shido, Masaki, Akabane, and Emishii. Juubei came to focus approaching with the all clear. Ginji sat then stood up, "Why am I here? I have to go back. I have to finish them off!"

Kazuki looked at the remaining Volts members, "Ginji-kun, you can't feasibly stay here in this condition- you could kill them all."

Waves of memories struck, some with Ban, others with friends, first happy then dead. He stumbled back a step and held his head, "Why? I did it to save them… but now you're throwing me away…" His eyes let off telling crackling sounds as they radiated energy.

"G... Ginji-kun we aren't! We're so thankful, but right now you're at critical mass, everything around you is off, if you absorb any more your release would wipe it all out- all of _them_ and possibly us."

"I've been assigned to transport you a safe distance, and discharge you, Ginji-kun. Then, you should be able to return, if you survive that is."

Ginji grabbed Akabane. "I'll kill you, do you understand!" I don't _have_ anything left- won't have…" Realization hit. "I'll go. Hurry up."

Ban staggered down, back from the execution. "Where is he?"

The others looked as though in mourning. "Ban! He's going off with Akabane- he's going off to die!"

"What! Who let Akabane cart him off!"

"We had to, he could've killed them all." Masaki explained. Ban, normally, would redirect his anger at an object unable to feel pain, cigarettes, walls, Ginji's head… today he wanted to hear a scream, he punched Masaki in the jaw.

"You always find an excuse to sacrifice _him_! Why can't _he_ be smart enough to _see that_! _Where_ did they go? I have to save him!"

"Out of the city limits." Kazuki stated flatly. "Ban-kun, you're the only one here who could ever save him. You're the only one who can make his smile reach his eyes. Kami-sama get that back before it's too late Ban-kun!"

Ban hauled ass out of Mugenjo to the 360, miraculously not towed, and as he sped through Tokyo he found Jackal and Raitei four blows into the fight.

Jackal pulled out two double sets as Raitei held his hand upward ready to strike fast and without mercy.

"_GINJI!_"

Ginji- no Raitei, flinched at the name, but more specifically the voice. More and more of Jackal's scalpels hit only to do nothing as his concentration remained, but in the instance- he still didn't wince. "No, it's a lie… Ban-chan's dead." He pointed his right, open hand at Akabane. "Gomen, this is probably your end. I'll keep you company though, if that's alright."

Only a tenth of the power released, which still left a smoking crater, as Ban tackled Ginji with a snakebite to the right shoulder. Ginji slowly came out of his daze, "Iie… I'm not dead…" he looked Ban in the eyes with a confused look, "so how, Ban-chan I saw you die…"

Ban wrapped his arms around Ginji tightly.

"It's a lie you're DEAD… I saw you DIE…"

More electricity leaked from Ginji, Ban managed to bare it all, connecting a pathway to the ground that shielded his vital organs.

"Baka… You'd kill yourself for that? You reckless IDIOT! I'd never forgive you!" Ban's lips swallowed Ginji's as he cried in Ban's (slightly electrocuted) grip.

Akabane tipped his smoking hat. "That did manage to sting. How entertaining." He walked away, Kagami did offer the best of jobs.

Ginji continued to weep. "But the van…"

Ban held him closely, "Sh, sh, you idiot, it's a lie, it was the evil eye. I didn't realize it hit you, gods I'm so sorry-" he parted his left arm from around Ginji's waist to wipe away his partner's teary eyes, "but just don't tell the others I apologized."

Ginji wrapped his arms and tangled a leg around Ban, pulling his as physically close to Ginji's body as possible. "Never, ever, ever again…"

"Never ever, ever again what, Ginji? It better be Raitei, I almost lost you!"

"I never want us apart again! You can't do this to me, I'm too stupid, damn it, Ban-chan you were…" He hiccupped as he continued to bawl.

"On two conditions, got it partner?"

Ginji nodded frantically, "What conditions?"

"No Raitei. _You_ almost lost _me_ nothing. _I'm_ invincible, you're irreplaceable. Second condition- what was with those suicide missions! Forever means forever! I also want to hear you tell me you love me back at least half as much as I love you, and I went to hell for you."

"But I do Ban-chan—I went through hell without you… I love you, I love you, I love you!" He launched himself into a deep kiss with Ban, successfully tripping them both onto the grass as they made frantic physical contact with each other to heal the mental wounds the day had incurred.

COMPLETED 06.03.2006


End file.
